Bark Beetle Update

Below is an update from the Colorado State Forest Service concerning bark beetle.  You can view the document on Google Docs by clicking here.  For those of you on my producer blast, I will send an attachment as well.

Redbook Excel Spreadsheet

You ever have one of "those" days?  Yesterday was one of "those" days.  42 emails of somebody wanting something and it seemed like the more we did the more we were behind.  You all in the ag industry know this too well.  My favorite one of "those" days is when you finally get to go on a vacation and as you're dressed up and in your wife's car.  You get 5 miles from home and come upon a herd of cows in the road and most certainly they are yours.  There's broken wire and they for some reason can't seem to go back through where they had gotten out.  You know the routine.

Anyways, in the midst of having one of "those" days, we were informed that the post office has lost our shipment of Redbooks.  This frustrates me to say the least because I feel it damages our credibility as we are pushing to make Fremont County Extension the go-to source for your ag information needs.  I also know that some of you are on the verge of calving and rely on these books to keep accurate records. 

With that being said, we are ordering more books and directly from the source, eliminating the middle man on campus.  I have no timeline for their arrival but will let you know asap.

In the meantime, we have found this awesome little spreadsheet that you can download directly by clicking on the link below:

Redbook Excel Spreasheet

It really is pretty nifty and have it saved on my OneDrive so that I can enter information on my phone or Ipad as our own calving time nears. 

Again, I apologize for the delay.  I hope you have a great week and keep getting some moisture!

Jeramy

Lasting Legacy Workshop

It's never too early to begin planning succession of your farm or ranch.  Please consider attending one of these workshops!

Last Trimester Nutrition for Cattle

With the arrival of the new year, so too comes that wonderful time of year when baby calves start hitting the ground.  Depending on your calving schedule, the last trimester of your herd's pregnancy period is either here or about to happen sooner than later.  Of course cattle nutrition is important all year long and there are important nutritional benchmarks for each trimester, I thought we could look at the last trimester since it is most relevant based upon the time of year.

1. Body Condition Score (BCS)
  - If you haven't done so, now is the time to look at each of your cows and give them a body condition score (1-9).  Going into this last trimester, cows should have a score of at least a 5 but preferably a 6.  A cow with a body score of 5 will be smooth over her spine and vertebrae and only her last 2 ribs will be visible.  A 6 will be even smoother with no ribs showing. 

Cows with a good BCS will give more milk and return to estrus sooner.  Cows need to rebreed within 83 days of calving for them to have a calf within a 365 day period.  Cows with a lower BCS will have trouble coming into heat by 80 days after calving.  Cows with a higher BCS tend to exhibit heat with 55 days of calving, giving you a chance to get them bred within 2 heat cycles and in case they don't get covered the first cycle.

Also, calves born to cows with a good BCS are better equipped to regulate their body heat and stand to nurse more quickly.  They are more resistant to stress and disease as well.  More times than not, a calf that gets sick will lose you money. 

2.  Crude Protein
    - Supplementing crude protein the last 90 days of pregnancy can be a critical step when it comes to the overall potential of your calf crop.  The fetus does 70% of its growing during this period.  The amount of CP and energy to support fetal growth goes up by 25% during this time.  A 1,300 lb cow will need somewhere between 1.5 to 2 lbs/day of CP during this time period.  After calving this number should go up to 2 to 2.4 lbs/day. 

Hopefully you have a good idea of the CP content and TDN of your feed.  Higher quality feed like alfalfa may have all you need.  Lower quality quality forages may need to be supplemented with a product to meet their CP needs. 

One interesting study out of Nebraska has shown that heifer calves out of cows that have been supplemented with protein and energy had higher pregnancy rates than heifers from non-supplemented cows at a rate of 93% for supplemented compared to 80% for non-supplemented cows.

Use the following link from Virginia Cooperative Extension for some cool charts concerning cattle nutrition at different trimesters and ages.  Link

3.  Minerals
    - Finally minerals like Copper, Zinc, Manganese, and Selenium during this trimester are equally important for fetal health.  They play a crucial role in the calf's immune system, the cows fertility, and colostrum production.  Consult your veterinarian for what your cows may need in your area.  Some areas have high levels of selenium in the soil and supplementing it would cause problems.  Please read earlier blog posts concerning selenium levels and Vitamin A Deficiencies. 

As with anything you do, it is always wise to consult a vet or cattle nutritionist to develop a cattle nutrition and herd health plan to keep your animals healthy and maximize profits.


For more information, you can watch a video about third trimester and post-partum nutrition out of North Dakota State University by clicking here.

Have a great day!

8 New Year's Resolutions for Farmers/Ranchers

In the ag world, we often don't have time to think about resolutions because we are already busy with what needs done.  So I thought it might be poignant to start one of my resolutions of being more consistent with blog posts by providing a list of resolutions that is geared towards our ag community.

1. Embrace Technology

    - Technology is becoming an integral part of our ag operations.  Embracing new technologies like drones or apps on our smartphones can help you stay ahead of the curve.  If you don't know what's out there, google "Technology for Farmers and Ranchers".  Some of my favorites are the financial and pasture mapping apps.

2.  Evaluate the Future

     - Now is a good time to evaluate the future of your farm/ranch.  How long do you want to keep going?  How involved do your children want to be?  Do you need a succession plan?  Our Ag Business Management Team has a great presentation called A Lasting Legacy.  You can come find out when and where they are doing presentations or they have an online presentation which you can find by clicking here.

3.  Set Aside Down Time

     -  Nobody will argue that farming and ranching is physically and mentally draining.  We also know that there is always work to be done.  That is why now is a good time to schedule ahead of time opportunities to relax and recover.  Then set in your mind that you will do it when the time comes.  It truly is an investment in your operation.

4.  Professional Development

    - There are many opportunities to attend seminars, workshops, or farm shows to help you keep up with current research or technologies.  Soil health, range management, and drought management have become the predominant subject matter recently.  If you haven't been to the no-til conference in Burlington, CO, I highly suggest you try and attend.  It is a fantastic conference with lots of vendors and great food!

5.  Commitment to Safety

     - Now is the time of year to catch up on things that you know will make our operation a little more safe but haven't had the time to get to it.  A new light in the barn, corral repairs, or machinery issues can be addressed so you don't have to worry about it while you are busy.  

6.  Perform a Routine Water Quality Test

    - For those of you on a well, it is good to sporadically get a routine water quality test performed.  We have the bottles and paperwork here at the Extension Office.  For less than $30, you can have piece of mind that the water you, your family, and your livestock consume is safe.

7.  Mental Health

    -  The problem that dare not be spoken.  Currently the suicide rate of farmers is more than double that of veterans.  Drought, money owed, machinery tear-ups.  All of these things create a significant amount of stress.  There is no shame in talking to someone about these situations and how they are affecting you before it is too late.  If not for you, do it for your loved ones.  CSU is currently looking into this and developing resources for you.  Please come in and talk to us.

8.  Visit the Extension Office!

     -  I would like to encourage all of you to stop in at least once this year and see if there is anything we can do for you.  We have so many resources on just about any subject.  We even have an in-house water specialist that is happy to have a conversation with you.  ( I know this because I just asked to make sure lol). Our staff is first-rate and always willing to help. We truly want to provide our services to you in any way we can this 2019.  Hope to see you soon and have a happy, safe, and prosperous New Year!

Keep Her or Cull Her?

I just talked to my old man yesterday who does a fair amount of preg checking each year.  He said that his schedule is already booking up fast.  Throughout the melee of his pregging schedule, we have to find time to do our own.  That got me thinking about the culling process and what my plan of attack would be this year.  Because of the drought, our cows were a little later bulling than the last few years so I'm a touch worried about our conception rates this year. 

Every year is a little different when it comes to culling rates.  Drought, stocking capacity, feed prices, body condition, open cows, calf performance, udder conformation, and age all play important factors when it comes to deciding what to keep and what to cull.  Another deciding factor is their temperament.  I have one that is just a nasty ol rip to be around but of course is always bred and raises the nicest calf in the herd. Then you have the decision of when to get rid of them.  Do you do it now and save feed or do you feed them up to put on lbs and sell in the spring when prices are typically higher?

There really is no one-size-fits-all approach to culling.  In my situation, I first need to see who got bred and who didn't.  I typically lean towards getting rid of anything that doesn't breed.  Something caused that cow to not reproduce and I don't want to spend extra money on her finding out if it was just a fluke. 

From there I factor in my stocking rates.  This is dependent on how many replacement heifers I have coming up.  If they all decide to breed, then I can cut a little deeper.  I'll look at body condition, udder conformation, what kind of calf they raised this year, and size.  I may cut one that is a little larger because she might pound out better at the sale and I believe there is money in running optimal-sized cows.  Age won't be a huge factor this year but will still be in the back of my mind as in 2 or 3 years it will be at the forefront of my culling decisions.

I have done a lot of personal research in relation to when I should get rid of my culls.  This year, mostly due to feed prices, I will get them to the sale as quickly as possible.  Also, my lease is by the head so I want to get them gone and stop the bleeding on a cow that won't be producing a calf.  I have friends who feed out their culls and sell in the spring but they have access to cheaper feed and the facilities to run them.  I don't have that luxury and in most cases it pencils out to sell them this fall. I looked up prices from a week ago and it looks like culls are up a little.

Again, this is what I'm looking at this year and typically it's different for everyone based upon their operation.  Hopefully you've kept good records on your herd so you can make an informed decision that puts more money in your pocket!  Feel free to use the comment section below to let us know your strategies.  Something you do might be a new and better approach for someone else!

Rocky Mountain Pine Beetle

We had a question about Rocky Mountain Pine Beetle and if there are any prevention strategies along with any government assistance to help mitigate an infestation.  We do have a fact sheet on them with some strategies that you can find in the link below.  I've also included a link to the Colorado State Forest Service that outlines some more strategies.

I have yet to find any funding sources to help with the costs.  If any of you out there know of any funding sources to help offset the costs, please let us know!  You can use the comment area at the bottom or send me an email at jeramy.mcneely@colostate.edu.

CSU Fact Sheet

Colorado State Forest Service

Any information or experience you have with this subject would be most appreciated!  Let's get a dialogue going in the comment section.